“What Is Expected of New Members – Be Holy” – Joshua 7

5/5/13  Christ Fellowship

“What Is Expected of New Members – Be Holy” – Joshua 7

Let’s think for a minute about how most people go about getting some extra money.  Our church is going to have a garage sale next Saturday.  That’s one way.  Other people may work a little longer or harder or smarter.  That’s a good way to earn some extra cash.  Some people may sell something they have or not buy something they normally would buy to make their money last a little longer and those are all good ways to do it.

What about putting small pieces of razor blades in donuts and then eating them?  Did you ever think of that for raising a few extra bucks?  No?  Really?  Carol Lee Leazer-Hardman, 39, and Michael Condor, 35, were arrested in Draper, Utah for filing a false police report after allegedly sticking the razor bits into doughnuts they purchased at a Smith's Food and Drug store and then actually eating the blade-filled pastries.  Police said Condor admitted that the two had planted the blades in the doughnuts so they could get a settlement from the store.

It went on to say that the pair actually ingested parts of the razor blades and had to taken to the hospital.  After the hospital, they went to jail.  The problem with their little plan was that it caused them great pain, hindered their job prospects since they did it at work and they now have police records and they nearly died.  Those are 3 pretty big problems just for trying to get ahead in life.  But it is not the first time nor will it be the last that people are punished in that way for their sins.

I picked a pretty ridiculous (but true) story to illustrate the ridiculous consequences but the truth is that every sin will hurt us in the same ways.  And you can call what this couple did “ridiculous” or you could call it a mistake or you could call it a lack of wisdom, youthful indiscretion, an oopsie or a misdemeanor.  God calls it sin.  And sin, every sin, will cause problems.  As your bulletin insert says, sin will bring distress, sin will bring deterrence and sin will bring death. It’s just a matter of time.

This is the second in a 3-part series about what is expected of new members to our church.  Last week we had 2 guest speakers but the week before that we looked at Joshua chapter 6 for the first part of the series.  We saw there that we are to be warriors and to believe the word God gives us and then to finish the job God gives us.  This week we will look at Joshua chapter 7 where we see that new members (and all of us) are expected to be holy.

Now before we go any further, we need to know exactly what it means for us to be holy.  Some of you may be sitting there thinking you were wanting to join but if you are going to be expected to act like the Pope then now you are having second thoughts.  Let me ask you some questions.  Would you consider this building to be holy?  Yes.  As a holy building, would it be appropriate to ride your motorcycle in here and change the oil?  Would it be appropriate for us to meet here every night at 10 to watch the news?  Would it be appropriate for you to catch a mess of fish and then bring them in here to clean them?  No, of course not.

There is nothing wrong with changing your oil, watching the news or cleaning your fish.  You just wouldn’t do it in here.  This building is set apart for the things of God.  That’s what it means to be holy.  It is the same meaning of the word “consecrated”.  We saw that word in Joshua chapter 3 when Josh told the people to “consecrate yourselves because tomorrow God will do something amazing among you.”  He is just saying set yourselves apart from the rest of the world.  Be different.  When people are around you for any length of time they should come away saying that there is something different about that person.

 

 

In the 3^rd book of the Bible, Leviticus, God says, “Be holy because I am holy.”  Moses wrote the first 5 books of the Bible, most of which are filled with ways that the Israelites were to live so as to be holy.  God takes this holy stuff very seriously; so seriously that there are consequences for not living a holy life.  Now, I know I have heard the term, Benefits of Obedience and Consequences of Disobedience (BOOCOD) before and I am quite sure all that started before the Bible was actually written.  When God told Adam and Eve not to eat of that one tree, He was basically telling them to be holy.  That tree was holy.  They should be holy. 

I hear people all the time complaining about somebody they work with or a neighbor or somebody that did them wrong and they can’t understand why that person would do such a thing.  Well that person is just doing what people in the world do.  It’s just their nature.  People will lie, cheat and steal if they think they won’t get caught because that’s just what they do.  That’s why we are called to be holy and different and set apart.  You can memorize the whole Bible and be able to lead people down the Roman Road and know all there is to know to be able to lead somebody to Christ but if they don’t see a positive difference in you then all of that is for nothing.

God says be holy.  In fact, He says for us to be holy or ELSE!  Let’s look at what that “or ELSE” is in Joshua chapter 7.

In Joshua 6 we see the Israelites have crossed over into the Promised Land and now they have to defeat Jericho.  Jericho is a heavily fortified city but God tells them to just trust Him and do what He says and everything will be ok.  By the way…He’s still saying that.  Just trust Him and do what He says and everything will be ok.  The only stipulation God gave them was in chapter 6 verse 18.  God has told them that He will fight the battle for them all they have to do is “keep away from the devoted things so that you will not bring about your own destruction by taking any of them.”

Easy enough, right?  Look at how chapter 7 starts.  But the Israelites were unfaithful in regard to the devoted things^[a]; Achan son of Karmi, the son of Zimri,^[b] the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, took some of them. So the Lord’s anger burned against Israel.  ² Now Joshua sent men from Jericho to Ai, which is near Beth Aven to the east of Bethel, and told them, “Go up and spy out the region.” So the men went up and spied out Ai.  ³ When they returned to Joshua, they said, “Not all the army will have to go up against Ai. Send two or three thousand men to take it and do not weary the whole army, for only a few people live there.” ⁴ So about three thousand went up; but they were routed by the men of Ai, ⁵ who killed about thirty-six of them. They chased the Israelites from the city gate as far as the stone quarries and struck them down on the slopes. At this the hearts of the people melted in fear and became like water.  ⁶ Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the Lord, remaining there till evening. The elders of Israel did the same, and sprinkled dust on their heads. ⁷ And Joshua said, “Alas, Sovereign Lord, why did you ever bring this people across the Jordan to deliver us into the hands of the Amorites to destroy us? If only we had been content to stay on the other side of the Jordan! ⁸ Pardon your servant, Lord. What can I say, now that Israel has been routed by its enemies? ⁹ The Canaanites and the other people of the country will hear about this and they will surround us and wipe out our name from the earth. What then will you do for your own great name?”  ¹⁰ The Lord said to Joshua, “Stand up! What are you doing down on your face? ¹¹ Israel has sinned; they have violated my covenant, which I commanded them to keep. They have taken some of the devoted things; they have stolen, they have lied, they have put them with their own possessions. ¹² That is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies; they turn their backs and run because they have been made liable to destruction. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy whatever among you is devoted to destruction.  ¹³ “Go, consecrate the people. Tell them, ‘Consecrate yourselves in preparation for tomorrow; for this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: There are devoted things among you, Israel. You cannot stand against your enemies until you remove them.  ¹⁴ “‘In the morning, present yourselves tribe by tribe. The tribe the Lord chooses shall come forward clan by clan; the clan the Lord chooses shall come forward family by family; and the family the Lord chooses shall come forward man by man. ¹⁵ Whoever is caught with the devoted things shall be destroyed by fire, along with all that belongs to him. He has violated the covenant of the Lord and has done an outrageous thing in Israel!’”  ¹⁶ Early the next morning Joshua had Israel come forward by tribes, and Judah was chosen. ¹⁷ The clans of Judah came forward, and the Zerahites were chosen. He had the clan of the Zerahites come forward by families, and Zimri was chosen. ¹⁸ Joshua had his family come forward man by man, and Achan son of Karmi, the son of Zimri, the son of Zerah, of the tribe of Judah, was chosen.  ¹⁹ Then Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the Lord, the God of Israel, and honor him. Tell me what you have done; do not hide it from me.”  ²⁰ Achan replied, “It is true! I have sinned against the Lord, the God of Israel. This is what I have done: ²¹ When I saw in the plunder a beautiful robe from Babylonia,^[c] two hundred shekels^[d] of silver and a bar of gold weighing fifty shekels,^[e] I coveted them and took them. They are hidden in the ground inside my tent, with the silver underneath.”  ²² So Joshua sent messengers, and they ran to the tent, and there it was, hidden in his tent, with the silver underneath. ²³ They took the things from the tent, brought them to Joshua and all the Israelites and spread them out before the Lord.  ²⁴ Then Joshua, together with all Israel, took Achan son of Zerah, the silver, the robe, the gold bar, his sons and daughters, his cattle, donkeys and sheep, his tent and all that he had, to the Valley of Achor. ²⁵ Joshua said, “Why have you brought this trouble on us? The Lord will bring trouble on you today.”  Then all Israel stoned him, and after they had stoned the rest, they burned them. ²⁶ Over Achan they heaped up a large pile of rocks, which remains to this day. Then the Lord turned from his fierce anger. Therefore that place has been called the Valley of Achor^[f] ever since.

Wow!  All I can say is that I am so glad that God has changed and doesn’t feel as strongly about sin as He used to, right?  I mean, obviously He has.  Obviously God doesn’t take this sin thing as seriously as He used to.  He has mellowed in His old age.  He understands now that we can’t be expected to always be holy and to always do the right thing.  I think He must understand mankind a little better than He used to.

On the other hand, James 1:17 says God never changes.  Psalm 33:11 states, "The Lord's plans stand firm forever; His intentions can never be shaken."   "The grass withers, and the flowers fade, but the word of our God stands forever" (Isaiah 40:8).  "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever" (Hebrews 13:8). For I the LORD do not change.  Malachi 3:6

Now if all that is true then that makes sin a scary business.  If God hasn’t changed and His plan and His word stand forever then that means that sin still brings distress, sin still brings deterrence and sin still brings death.  Do you think that maybe that is why it also says in Proverbs 9:10, “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom”?  Some people think that to fear the Lord means just to show Him some respect.  When you are talking about pain in my life, hindering my life or the end of my life, that scares me.  I know God to be loving and kind and gentle but I also have seen His wrath and I don’t want any part of that!

Let’s look at verse 6 and read it again to see one way that sin brings distress.  ⁶ Then Joshua tore his clothes and fell facedown to the ground before the ark of the Lord, remaining there till evening. The elders of Israel did the same, and sprinkled dust on their heads.

What had Joshua done wrong?  Did Joshua sin?  Did the elders sin?  No.  But they paid the price of Achan’s sin.  In fact, look at what God then says in verse 11.  “Israel has sinned.”  God knew Achan’s name just like He knows my name or your name but when I sin or you sin the whole body suffers.  Now, I know what you are thinking.  You are thinking that this was Old Testament and we live under the grace of the New Testament and that is true.  BUT, look at I Corinthians 5:1-5.

It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and of a kind that even pagans do not tolerate: A man is sleeping with his father’s wife. ² And you are proud! Shouldn’t you rather have gone into mourning and have put out of your fellowship the man who has been doing this? ³ For my part, even though I am not physically present, I am with you in spirit. As one who is present with you in this way, I have already passed judgment in the name of our Lord Jesus on the one who has been doing this. ⁴ So when you are assembled and I am with you in spirit, and the power of our Lord Jesus is present, ⁵ hand this man over to Satan for the destruction of the flesh,^[a][b] so that his spirit may be saved on the day of the Lord.

Wooo…there are 4 different sermons right there.  We may be a little late getting out of here.  Paul tells the church in Corinth to get rid of the man who continues to live in sin.  Expel him.  Get rid of him.  There is a time and place for grace and forgiveness but this man was continuing to live this way and the people of that church were proud of themselves for showing him grace.  Paul says no way.  That’s wrong.  He can’t stay in fellowship with the body because the whole body was being distressed.

 

Have you ever had an ingrown toenail?  Some of you have, sure.  I had one once.  No big deal.  Just a little distraction at first.  Then it got to bothering my whole foot and I started to limp just a little bit.  Still not much to worry about.  But then my limp caused me to put all my weight on the other leg which made that hip start hurting.  And then because of that, my back and neck started bothering me and I wound up with headaches and even a fever.  All because of that tiny little piece of toenail that was sticking in my toe.  I finally went to the doctor and he removed that piece of toenail and I have been ok ever since.

But it caused my whole body a lot of pain and distress and it is the same with sin in our lives.  We think it is no big deal.  Just a little distraction.  It’s not really hurting me or anybody else.  What was it that Achan did?  All he did was take a few things.  Nobody would ever have known.  He wasn’t hurting anybody, right?

Verse 13 of Joshua chapter 7 is a powerful verse.  Let’s look at it again.  ¹³ “Go, consecrate the people. Tell them, ‘Consecrate yourselves in preparation for tomorrow; for this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: There are devoted things among you, Israel. You cannot stand against your enemies until you remove them.

You can’t stand against your enemies until you remove the sin from your lives.  You can’t stand against the powers of darkness, this church can’t stand against the powers of Satan and his attacks until you remove the sin that is in your lives.  If your life is not holy and consecrated, set aside, and different then you and this whole body of believers are at risk and that is why we are saying that is what is expected of the members of this church.  This church says it because God says it.  Be holy because sin brings distress to the whole body.

Not only does sin bring distress but it also brings deterrence.  Sin is a deterrence to being able to stand against our enemies.  It deters us from knowing God’s will.  It deters us from doing what we are supposed to be doing.  Sin deters us from having an impact in our community.  It deters us from having God’s hand of protection over us.

Let’s go back and look again at verse 12.  ¹² That is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies; they turn their backs and run because they have been made liable to destruction. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy whatever among you is devoted to destruction.

God is talking to His special people, the Israelites.  He’s not talking to a bunch of hillbillies.  He’s not talking to the Philistines or the Assyrians or the communists.  He is talking to His chosen people and He tells them He will not be with them anymore if they don’t take care of this sin problem.

My dear family, it is time that you and I decided that we want God to be with us more than we want anything else in the world.  It is time that we said we want God with us more than we want to be entertained; more than we want stuff; more than we want to gossip or to lie or to look good or to be popular or anything else!  Let the world have that.  Give me Jesus.  I want God on my side and I will not be deterred by sin or the schemes of the prowling lion who wants to kill me dead.

Sin brings a barrier between us and God and deters us from Him and His protection just like it did for Joshua and the Israelites but holiness brings His protection.  Choose you this day who you will serve.  You can serve yourself and the world and Satan or you can choose to be holy.  You have to make the choice to be holy.  I have heard it said that no one drifts toward holiness and that is so true.  It is a battle every day but if you don’t put on the armor of God and stand against your enemy then God says He will not be with you.  It doesn’t mean we lose our salvation.  It just means that God’s protective hand is deterred from our lives just like it was with Israel.

Sin brings distress.  It brings deterrence.  And it also still brings death.  The Bible teaches that there are 3 stages to this: desire, sin and then death.  James 1:15 says, “Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.”  You see it in the life of David in the Old Testament in 2 Samuel 11.  David is walking around minding his own business when he looks over and sees Bathsheba.  He has a desire.  It leads to sin.  And then Uriah is dead and the child David then has dies as well.

 

Romans 6:23 says that the wages of sin is death.  Make no mistake.  That prowling lion, Satan, wants to kill you dead.  He hates you with an unquenchable, passionate hate and when you are living a holy life it makes it even worse.  Sometimes I think that the Google homepage should have little devil horns on it.  How many of you have ever Googled something and had some link pop up that you never would have imagined would be related to your search?

You can Google happy bunny, kittens and puppies, rainbows and lollipops, I love Jesus and something sinister will pop up and say, “Hey, come look at me.”  That’s not Google’s fault.  That is a trap set by Satan himself because he knows your weakness and he knows if he can get to your desire then you are on the road to sin and then death.  3 steps and you are a goner: desire, sin, death.  Psalm 101:3 says, “I will put before my eyes no vile thing.”  That would be a good verse to print out and tape to your computer or your tv or your wallet.

Because no matter if that death means a literal, physical death, the end of your life or if it means the death of a relationship between you and a loved one or between you and God or even the death of a church, just know that sin still brings death and that is why God says to be holy.  He loves you with an unquenchable, passionate love that wants the best for you and for this church and that best only comes from being holy.  Sin brings distress, deterrence and death.  A holy relationship with God through His Son Jesus brings joy, freedom and life.  Choose you this day who you will serve.